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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2019 - 2020
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | July 26, 2019 09:16 AM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Daylin Leach |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Paid Parental Leave |
| Soon I will reintroduce legislation to mandate paid parental leave in Pennsylvania. This bill would require that mothers and fathers of newborns, who work more than 20 hours per week at employers with at least 20 employees, receive at least 12 weeks of leave at full pay. As you may know, the United States is the only industrialized, western nation that does not require paid parental leave for its workers. Even in this country, only a handful of states require some form of paid family leave. Pennsylvania, as a state, provides nothing along these lines to the parents of newborns. While the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act requires employers grant certain employees 12 weeks of unpaid leave, this is an unrealistic option for many workers, particularly low-income women who live in poverty and can't afford to miss a single paycheck. The lack of a requirement of paid leave in current law leaves many workers without any realistic family leave options whatsoever. Furthermore, studies have shown that providing paid leave produces significant positive outcomes for parents, children and the organizations for which they work. I believe that Pennsylvania can and should become the sixth state in the nation to truly embrace the concept of “family values” by requiring paid parental leave for workers. This bill was known as Senate Bill 862 during the 2017-2018 session. It was cosponsored by Senators Fontana and Schwank. Please join me in supporting this important legislation. If you have questions about this legislation, please don’t hesitate to contact me. |
Introduced as SB860